Fail to Learn! What’s more important: theory or experience or a bit of both? Register

Debate topic: Fail to Learn! What’s more important: theory or experience or a bit of both?

This debate will focus on the future needs of a capable engineering workforce for society and the benefits of investing time in education vs being part of a workforce and learning from the experience of failure. The debate will also focus on the future need for engineering degrees to meet industry, government and society’s expectations e.g. chartered.

Questions to be raised include:

In a dynamically shifting workforce, will the level (and type) of experience outweigh the benefits of any particular degree?

With the right forms of education, can engineers exert influence on the environment whilst lacking the experience and professional judgement of superiors?

Will a baseline level of experience for a particular role continue to be mandated and therefore disadvantage young professional influence in the workforce?

Is knowledge/wisdom more important than creativity/ingenuity and innovation?